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Juan Emilio Cheyre was chief of the army between 2002 and 2006

A Chilean court has convicted the former army commander-in-chief of complicity in the deaths of 15 people following the 1973 military coup.

General Juan Emilio Cheyre was sentenced to three years and a day under house arrest.

He is the most senior figure to be held accountable so far for abuses carried out during the regime of General Augusto Pinochet.

The killings were carried out by the notorious "Caravan of Death".

The Caravan of Death was a military unit sent by General Pinochet to remote Chilean areas to hunt down opposition activists.

Speaking outside the court on Friday, investigating judge Mario Carroza said the conviction of Cheyre - who was chief of the army between 2002 and 2006 - demonstrated the "egalitarian" justice system that Chile now enjoys.